Flower Mound High School's Mary McMinimy Named a State Finalist for Texas Secondary Teacher of the Year

Most of what Mary McMinimy does at Flower Mound High School never shows up in a press release. She teaches in the Life Skills program, working with students with significant cognitive disabilities and building the kind of independence that takes years to develop. This fall, the state noticed.

McMinimy was named one of three state finalists for Texas Secondary Teacher of the Year, representing Lewisville ISD. The Texas Association of School Administrators announced six finalists total — three elementary, three secondary — from across the state. She has worked at Flower Mound High School alongside Life Skills students across both Academic and Functional Life Skills settings.

As Life Skills Department Chair, she coordinates with teachers and paraprofessionals to push student growth and independence forward. Among her best-known contributions is a student-run vocational program — a hands-on workplace where students build vocational habits, practice communication, and work toward independent living. She also co-sponsors the school's Circle of Friends program, which creates connections between Life Skills students and their general education peers.

The 2027 Texas Teacher of the Year awards were announced in October 2026 in Round Rock. Denise Caldera was named Texas Elementary Teacher of the Year and Caleb Gamblin, of Bangs ISD, took Texas Secondary Teacher of the Year. McMinimy did not win the top prize. Reaching the final three among educators statewide is recognition in its own right.

This is the second consecutive year a Texas Secondary Teacher of the Year finalist has come from Flower Mound High School. Last year it was Timothy Fails, a geography teacher at the Flower Mound 9th Grade Campus, who was a finalist for the 2026 Texas Secondary Teacher of the Year.

The work in McMinimy's classroom — patient, deliberate, often invisible from the outside — earned a spotlight that reached every school district in Texas.